Celinda Blinkie Blackcog
Celinda "Blinkie" Blackcog, the eldest daughter of former Gnomeregan Tinkers' Court minister Albax Blackcog and his late spouse, Mara. She, her father, and her sister Kanni Blackcog, are the only known members of the esteemed Blackcog clan to survive the cataclysmic irradiation of Gnomeregan. She is now a member of the Gnomeregan Exiles and one of the foremost Gnomish Magi not directly associated to the Kirin Tor. She heads the Grand Alliance Institute for Research, Development and Advancement of the Sciences, and is a member of the publically elected Gnomish Tinker's Court, holding the position of "Gearholder of Arcane and Research". As a businesswoman and engineer she open-minded and eager to cooperate with other races and officials, whereas her political work is characterized by a strong "Gnomes First" policy that often puts her at odds with other members of the Court. Biography Early life Born the first child to Albax and Mara Blackcog, two of the most genius inventors of recent Gnomish history, Celinda grew up caring for her younger siblings - Melcin, Jaros, Nennin, Haylid, Isole, Berna, and Kanni - while learning at a very early age the arts of Magic and Engineering, from both her parents. Proving supremely adept at both, Celinda earned the nickname "Blinkie" from her father because of her near-compulsive abuse of the Instant Teleportation spell, frequently known as "Blink". Even early in her life Blinkie pioneered many concepts, or supported her parents' inventions, and went on in her adult life to create many bizarre inventions such as the infamous "Black Cog" micro-explosive, the bane of many inventions of rival engineers and the significantly less malevolent Neural Hyperstimulation Helmet, or "Thinking Cap". Furiously patriotic, Blinkie chose not to even apply for membership in the Kirin Tor, believing her talents in the Arcane was best reserved for use in service of her own people. As a result, her significant potential went largely untapped for many years, and she grew to rely on crude magic, using raw power to achieve her spells rather than finesse. In the long run, this unrestrained use of magic took its toll on Blinkie, corrupting her heart and twisting her mind. While she had always been a reckless, sometimes dangerous individual, in time, she would become worse. She participated in the dangerous, cruel experiments on Gnomish soldiers carried out by her father to create the perfect soldier, intended to serve on the High Tinker's side in the event of a civil war. The project was a failiure, however, and was shut down quietly before it could be discovered by the Tinkers' Court. The only surviving test subject, Krick Cogwhirl, suffered serious withdrawal from the substances that kept him sustained during his experimental surgeries, and choosing to take her responsibility for his suffering, Blinkie spent many weeks caring for the soldier, which over time mellowed her out. Ever since, she would balance a very fine line, just on the border of shadow. The Trogg Invasion When the Troggs invaded Gnomeregan, Blinkie participated in the war as a Battle-Mage and Tank-pilot, fighting on the frontlines to protect her home and her people. Inventions Blinkie, like most successful Gnomish Engineers, have a large number of gadgets and gizmos to her name. Unlike most Gnomish Engineers, however, Blinkie's inventions are a reflection of her inner darkness, and frequently their primary, if not sole, purpose is to damage or destroy. Others serve more strictly military purposes than the ones fielded by the Alliance, which are frequently redesigns of existing civilian aperture. Neural Hyperstimulation Helmet One of the few inventions Celinda has churned out that does not serve a strictly military purpose, the "Thinking Cap", as it is known is a rather small, but ingenious device. Administering gentle electrical "prods" to the wearer's head, the Thinking Cap causes spontaneous changes in the users current thought-processes, in order to encourage unique and unexpected perspectives and solutions to problems, or entirely new ideas. Gnomes and Goblins already possess this unique type of non-linear thinking naturally, but other races may find the process unnerving and even unpleasant. Common side-effects of the device's use are headaches, nosebleeds (particularily common with Night Elves) and in rare cases, temporary loss of sight, smell or hearing. Multichromatic Strider Camoflage One of Blinkie's most ingenious inventions, the Multichromatic Strider Camoflage is a type of magically enhanced plating replacing or reinforcing the superstructure of a Gnomish Mechanostrider, giving the Strider the ability to shift its coloration either automatically or, with more advanced models, by the rider's prompting with a few buttons added to the side of the standard control panel. The Black Cog One of her first inventions to gain major reckognition, the infamous Black Cog is a type of microexplosive designed for industrial sabotage. Aesium Sea-Mine The Aesium Sea-Mine is a relatively new invention, brought about by the resurgance of naval conflicts during the Northrend campaigns. Designed to be 100% safe during transport, Aesium mines use a special type of explosive substance, from which it derives its name, crafted specifically by Blinkie herself. Aesium is, on its own, harmless, but when mixed with water - Specifically, salt water - becomes extremely volatile, and thanks to the sodium - Salt - is quick to ignite violently if even slightly disturbed. AT-2600 Combat Suit Skeleton The AT-2600 is considered one of the last great designs prior to the fall of Gnomeregan. It was designed to be a purely military version of the standard Patrol Mechs such as the 9-60 Crowd Pummeler and the X-21 Arcane Nullifier, and employed as the basis for several of these units future replacements once Gnomeregan had been evacuated. Certain larger Gnomish mechs, such as the ED-210 are designed to be operated by Gnomish pilots, and the AT-2600 is frequently used in place of such pilots to reduce the manpower needed for larger gnomish forces to operate independently. AT-5200 Combat Suit Skeleton The''' AT-5200''' was constructed after the success of the AT-2600, in order to take advantage of technological advancements made since its predecessor was first produced. Ironically, the 5200 was a failiure, being difficult to control and having frequent systems failiures related to the new enhancements. It was quickly discontinued, and the AT-2600 went on to be used for several more years. AT-7800 Combat Suit Skeleton After the failiure of the AT-5200 unit, Blinkie designed the AT-7800 ''' after a long hiatus on the military front, having spent most of her intermitten time developing the Neural Hyperstimulation Helmet. N-64 Combat Suit The N-64 Combat Suit was first introduced during the Sha'tar campaign to put an end to Illidan Stormrage in Outland. Based on recovered Legion designs for Fel Reavers, the N-64 is essentially a scaled down Fel Reaver with the massive fel-furnace powering it replaced with a steam engine and a cockpit. VB-32X Amphibious Submersible Clock-Tank This battle-tank was designed to be launched from Gnomish Submersibles to make rapid deployment of heavy siege machinery possible without the need for larger transport ships which would be easily spotted before landfall. In order to accomodate this, the '''VB-32X uses clockwork technology rather than steampower to remove the need for exhausts and the room usually needed for fuel, allowing the VB-32X to be smaller than most battle-tanks. It incorporates the same floatation technology as Dwarven Steam-ships with the quiet engines of Goblin Clockwerks in order to advance silently, in particular under the cover of darkness. The VB-32X is still a very fresh idea with numerous kinks in the design to work out, and it has yet to see mass-production or field testing. Category:Alliance Characters Category:Characters Category:Females Category:Gnomes Category:Mages Category:Engineers